


White Devil

by orphan_account



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: Abduction, Alcohol, Angst, Blood, Child Soldiers, Death, Drug injections, Family, Gore, Guilt, Interesting past, Jack the Ripper - Freeform, Missions, Nightmare, Pain, Super mindblowing spoilers, War, Weapons, obeying, patriots, some happy moments
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-06
Updated: 2015-10-22
Packaged: 2018-04-25 03:56:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4945828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Raiden's family has been capure by so e one who claims to know him.. Having set out to find his missing wife and son, he rejoins Maverick and to find whoever was responsible for his family's disappearance- and the one who has been kidnapping children from around the world. While on the move, Raiden has been having memory attacks, reminding himself of his past as Jack the Ripper and before he was a cyborg, causing him to lose focus on the mission.  Jack fears that if he doesn't get his memories fixed... then he may lose everything that kept him together- forever.<br/> </p><p>(This story has been cancelled. )</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back guys! The last story I made wasn't as interesting or detailed because it was my first fanfiction, so I'll call that one a little experiment. Anywho, for this story, I will add more action and make the chapters longer so you can enjoy. I will also love to hear comments or suggestions on what you think of the story or what opinion you have on it.
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you have a wonderful day! ^.^  
> \- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - -- - - - - -- - - - - -- -

_"Ah, welcome, mister... uh..."_

_"Raiden. Call me Raiden for now."_

_"Ah, yes... mister Raiden. Right this way."_

The therapist gestured the cyborg inside of his office and pointed towards the red sofa, where the patients would lie down and begin their session.

It was day, and the room was filled with light from the outside through the have closed blinds, making the room look like a scene from one of those black and white crime films. The carpet was also red, matching the sofa. And the walls and desk were made of brown, polished wood. A few potted plants were located around the room- they were Aloe Vera plants. The room smelled like polished furniture and shoe wax. There were shelves of books about psychological  thinking and the idea of peace and war.

 

Raiden sat on the couch uncomfortably, just sitting about unusually straight as if the back of the couch had needles all over it. The therapist closed the door and walked towards the leather armchair that was in front of where Raiden was sitting. He grabbed a clipboard and placed a metro meter onto a small table next to him. He set a timer to an hour and a half and set it next to the metronome, making a quiet ticking sound as the time was counting down. 

A long pause filled the air, making an akward silence. Raiden stared at the clock on the wall.  _It's only three. And the session is supposed to end at four thirty._ The cyborg felt anxious. What was he going to say in that amount of time? He felt like he could only tell everything in five minutes, not a hour and thirty!

Maybe it was a bad idea to come here, he thought. Maybe he should leave and cancel the appointment... but he knew it was too late for that. Last week, he had another nightmare which caused his inner Jack to awake and cause harm to Rose. Luckily for her, it was only a small bruise. But Raiden was a  _cyborg_ now, and Rose's bruised was caused by an _elbow_ to her cheek. 

' _But still, it could have been worse,'_ Raiden scolded at himself.After he had realized what he done, he was forced to sleep on the couch in the living room and was scheduled  for a therapy lesson to get his "issues" under control. He had apologized to his wife many times, but this time, he crooked the line. Rose said that she won't let it slip again this time and forced him to go and attend a session, or else he would get kicked out of the house.

If this lesson would stop the nightmares forever, than Raiden was more than ready to begin.

After clear in his throat to break the silence, the man fixed his glasses and inspected the clipboard. "Mr. Raiden..." He addressed as he scanned the given information. "It says here that you were a former military soldier and have been having nightmares from experience on battledfield for most of your life, correct?"

"Yes," he gulped. He lied. He didn't include that he was under the Patriots. He didn't include that he was a cyborg. And he didn't include his past... nor-  _the Ripper._

 _"_ Well now, Raiden. Let's begin the lesson. How do you feel?"

The cyborg blinked. _That is a stupid question_ , he scoffed in his mind. "I feel fine." Those were all the a or do that he could mutter out. He lied again. He didn't feel fine, he felt awful. He felt like he walked through hell too many times that when he died, he would already be familiar with the place.

The therapist didn't respond. He kept a collected expression on his face while writing down what was said onto the notes. Once he finished, he clicked his pen and continued the questions.

"What is your worst fear?

Raiden didn't reply for a second. He wanted to answer the question as carefully as possible. He was still sitting up, looking at the floor, trying to search for answers in his thoughts. What did he fear most? He had encountered everything. War, death, hatred. Well, Rose's cooking should count as a fear right? No, despite almost laughing at the suggestion, he had to be serious in order for this to work. What did he try to prevent? 

Finally, after thinking for so long, he came to a conclusion.

" I fear losing those whom I care about. Whenever I...  _lose_ myself... I fear that I would hurt those around me like what I have done in the past." He stopped right there, wondering if he had said too much.

The man raised his eyebrow in interest and scribbled down the answer, feeling satisfied  that the conversation was getting somewhere. 

"And... what about your strenths? What makes you comfortable?"

Raiden grumbled to himself without the man noticing. Who was this guy, a paparazzi? Why was he asking him such simple things when he should actually be helping him?

"Well..." He took a deep breath, "  _fighting._ It helps me take my mind off of things. It helps me forget what I have done. It... it _feels as if I belong on the battlefield."_

The man stopped in the midst of his writing and used the top of his pen to scratch his faded brown hair. He didn't look frightened- which surprised Raiden, but he looked rather curious and wanted to know more about this situation. Once he finished jotting  it down, he set the pen and clipboard onto the table next to the ticking timer and metronome. He put his hands together as if he was about to say something important.

"Now, I know this will be hard for you to do after I tell you this." He breathed and stared at his patient with serious contact. "I'm going to need to sleep."

 _"Sleep?!_ You want me to sleep?! Hell  no, proffesor! It's too dangerous!" Raiden shouted, almost standing up. The proffesor  flinched away from his face, surprised of the loud objection. 

"Please, calm down, Mr. Raiden." He said cautiously, lowering both of his hands to signal the cyborg to sit down. Raiden corrected himself and pooped onto the sofa, covering his face with his hands.

"I didn't mean it like that. What I meant to say was... whenever I sleep, I get... different."

"What do you mean by different?"

"I mean different as in... I get agressive in my sleep. I tend to hurt people when I am not awake to be aware of it. I have nightmares which seems to trigger my sanity. I become... unbalanced."

The therapist  nodded and quietly got out of the chair. He walked towards the windows and closed the blinds, making the room darker, having the desk lamp serve as the strongest light source. He opened a small draw ever from his desk and pulled out a small container- a pill container. 

Jack slowly flicked as the man came back. "What are those for?" He asked. Were they poison? Were they drugs? Was he going to get high?

"These are sleeping pills for patients who need rest. Don't worry, these do not require any prescription , as they have no side affects. You will only fall asleep."

As tempting as it was to finally get a good night's rest, his mind stayed sharp. No, he thought. ' _If I fall asleep, then I could hurt someone.'_

He grabbed the blue pill from the man's hand and swallowed it without drinking any water. His body felt relaxed, even if he was machine. Actually, the pill aims for the nervous and bloodstream, not the whole body. Raiden lie down on the sofa, which felt even more comfortable than before. The room around him was fading into an overwhelming  black. The sound of the metronome  was getting louder and the other sounds were gone. 

His eyes fell heavy and Raiden was getting weak from exhaustion, making his tiredness overpower him with ease. He finally stopped fighting with his body and close his eyes, exhaling a huge breath of carbon dioxide and breathing in more oxygen. His heart was beating slower and his breathing became quieter and even.

Was this it? Could he finally get to sleep in peace?

 

No, far from it.

 

Raiden's heart began to beat faster after being in a deep sleep and his breathing became unsteady. The artificial blood inside him was rushing around and his mind felt pressured.

He was having a nightmare.

 

 


	2. Reborn Again

_The Small Boy Unit. The title that has made lots of children compete against each other just to join...._

_Where so many children died trying. Twelve died in one day..._

_No-that was wrong..._

_Jack killed twelve in one day- with one weapon._

_The feeling of first witnessing a death up close was always going to be frightening and it might startle at times._

_However..._

_Killing someone would always be a blood chilling experience. Far more refreshing that witnessing a killing. It feels as if you were being reborn and a surge of power was coursing through your viens. Every bullet that you fire is the fate of your life and death. And every hit from a successful  shot was a satisfying, rewarding experience._

_But it's not the death that keeps us killers going- it is the look in the eyes and the blood- oh, the blood! Just seeing the fear in dying eyes and blood oozing out of a fresh open wound was the most exciting  sight to ever behold. And the screaming... it was as sweet as sugar._

_That is why we do it. That is why we kill. Seeing the life leak from their pathetic, we bodies adds another success to a hardworking day. This is also wh--_

_"Stop!"_

Jack was screaming and squirming in the chair. The metal cuffs that were attached to the chair held the boy in place so he wouldn't escape.

After killing Tortoise  and the Dragon team member and being named, "White Devil", Jack was taken to a basement underground. It had a flickering ceiling light that illuminated  the whole room, kind of like a creepy abandoned hospital. Solidus and four of his men, including Zuberi and Kamsen, all stood in front of him while Solidus was giving the long lecture about  killing. 

He wasn't happy with the boy's  attitude, however, which he could fix easily. The doctor that was standing to the side had a needle filled with black liquid. Was it poison? He stopped squirming to try to analyze what was happening. 

"What are you going to do to me?" He asked, his eyes widen with fear once the doctor came closer to him with the syringe.

"Relax, boy. It's just medicine to prevent yourself from diseases. You will now be in forests a lot, so we don't want any mosquitos giving you fevers." George reassured. 

The man pressed the syringe deep inside Jack's left arm and injected the medicine, causing the boy to cringe in slight pain. After the medicine was in, the doctor stepped back, allowing Solidus to scoot his chair closer in front of Jack. 

"Jack, I'm gonna tell you a little secret. Something that will  _never_ leave this room." He dismissed all of the men out of the area, leaving only him and the kid. He didn't continue until the last soldier closed the metal door. He leaned close to the boy's  face and whispered, "Do you want to know what it is?"

Jack didn't have a choice in the matter, so he nodded. He did wonder what was the secret. If his men had to leave, then it really must have been important.

George leaned closer into his ear and whispered, "I'm only fifteen years old." 

"What?!" Jack screamed, forgetting how close he was to George's  ear.  No way. He couldn't have been fifteen. He's lying! He looks like he's thirty, not half of it! Also, he would have been a child soldier with him if he was that age... could this be another test? 

Solidus pulled away, grimacing from the sudden pa in from his ear which was screamed into. He then smiled and sighed. "Yes, boy, it's heard to believd, I know. But I'm no liar. I really am fifteen years old."

"How?" He asked, starting to believe  him. If it weren't for the cuffs, he probably would have stood up. But instead, he was leaning on the edge of the seat.

Solidus chuckled. It was a long story to speak of, and it was also hard to believe. So he had to find a way to describe it. "I age very quickly," he said bluntly. "It was caused from a radiation incident when I was ten. My brain and body matured before my older siblings  could,  so I went to college and went in the military." That part was a lie. In truth, he was really a clone of Big Boss and aged quickly instead of radiation. He may have looked like he was thrity, but his body was technically  fifteen years old. He just matured quickly, compared to the other clones, who are still in their children state.

Jack couldn't believe it. He was technically  being trained by a  _kid._ But he had to realize that he did mature rapidly, so it doesn't count. Before he could ask another question, George placed his ruff hands onto his shoulders, staring deep into his surprised eyes.

"Jack, listen to me." He spoke with sterness. "You must  _never_ tell anyone about this. This does not leave the basement. If I catch someone even  _breathing_ a word about it, I will know it was you who talked. And you will be severely punished, understand?"

"Yes, sir," he gulped.

George ruffled the boy's hair and un locked the cuffs. He stepped back and continued to speak while Jack was rubbing his red wrists from the struggling earlier.

"As the leader of the Small  Boy  Unit squad, you are fully responsible for what happens to your team. Right now, the most you can do is lead missions. But as you progress and show that you are a good leader, you will gain the authority to punish your teammates if they don't follow rules. And if you do very well on that..." He took a deep breath, hoping that it would be the right decision. "You can  _lead_ real troops into war."

 

Jack had to take this all in. He wasn't sure if he even  _wanted_ to lead an amry! The thought of having control over hundreds of future missions and future men- well... that seemed pretty scary, for his age and all. He wasn't even sure if anyone agreed to this.He's positive that no one would want a five year old kid to boss them around and send them out to war. It would have been suicide! 

"Why me? Why do I have to do it? Isn't there someone else older and more experienced?" He asked, making a face of concern.

"Because you and I are  _special._ " he answered to him as if he was talking about magic. "No matter what age we are, we don't let that crap get in our way. We  _fought_ for survival, Jack. You and I were born to kill; we are the only young ones who are the most successful."

"But why me?"

"Well, one, I see you as a son more than some trainer. I raised you from a young age and kept you safe from the enemy. You also improved the most out of the rest. You also shot the twelve boys with no hesitation."

Guilt struck Jack like a knife in his chest. He didn't  _mean_ to kill all of them... something just... ticked. "I didn't me--"

George interrupted him."I'm not saying what you did was wrong, boy. They cheated in a fair match and pulled out weapons without authorization. You just disciplined them for doing so, and you did it rigut. I am actually  _proud_ of you, Jack."

He was confused. Why is he being praised for killing his allies? Were they really that bad, enough to be killed as proper punishment? But the problem wasn't about what he did anymore, as it was clearly pardoned. Now that everyone in the tent had witnessed his killing, his reputation would change jurassically and he would probably be feared or hated. He had to ask George about being a leader.

"Do you have any tips on being a leader?"

Solidus smiled and propped the boy on his feet. He pushed in his stomach and fixed his standing position, making Jack seem like a saluting soldier. "First off," he began as he cleared his throat, "always make sure that everyone, including yourself, knows that  _you_ are in charge. You give the orders- they don't. No one questions  your authority; but if they do, then you discipline  them into submission. Jack, everyone has witnessed what you can do. How  _powerful_ you were, which strikes fear. And fear, is what gets others to obey."

His last words repeated itself inside Jack's mind. _F_ _ear is power- and power makes others obey. If one fears you, then you can control them with no objections._ Could he prove how scary he was? Would it work? How can he prove to be a leader by using fear?

"To make others fear and respect you..." George mentioned as if he read his mind," you must kill and make people suffer. You have to be successful  at what you're doing. That way, no one will challenge you to power or authority." He held out his hand in front of Jack, who looked at it oddly, then realizing that he wanted a handshake.

He shrugged in his mind. Maybe what he is was about to do would be a good thing. Maybe being a leader is in his blood. Maybe killing is in it too.

He took the man's large hands and gave it a firm shake. Solidus smiled and chuckled. "Welcome to the Army of the Devil, Jack."

 

...........

 

 

Once again,  _Jack hated_ the first week of being the "leader." _  
_

 

After exiting tha basement with George, he was taken to a small building in the village- which was evacuated  and taken over as a training camp- where all of the children moved into from the large tent. They were all in one line, stepping up to the front to be injected with the same syrup as Jack was injected with.

As soon as he stepped in the area, the kids gave him blank looks that masked their true emotions- fear and worry. They wondered what had happened to him. They wondered if they will survive too. They wondered if the  _White Devil_ going to kill them next. Some of the boys avoided eye contact altogether, while others backed off a bit yet still remained in line. There were thirty kids in the line. The remaining forty are still in the tent, traumatized. The line progressed at a fair pace, since every child who stepped  foward has their names checked off and given the injection with the same syringe.

 _Ew, gross._ Jack winced. Using the same syringe was dangerous... but having all seventy two children use it? That's revolting.

After the shots were finished with everyone, they were all taken to the mess hall. It was a large area that was a former resturant. _How appropriate,_ Jack scoffed in his mind. It wasn't a fancy restaurant  either; it looked like an empty prison area, considering that most of the chairs, items, and carpet were all removed. All there sat in there were twelve tables with a broken ceiling  fan, barely hanging on by a red and black wire. Luckily, it didn't work, or else it  would have decapitated  everyone in the room if turned on. 

The food was  _strange._ Everyone was now fed once a day and the food tasted weird. It was usually some form of mashed potatoes- look for the paste. It was called Nutrition Meal. It was said that it had every vitamin that the perfect soldier needed. But that wasn't the part that was bad tasting- it was the black specks in it. Solidus persuaded the children that it was  _pepper-_ when it was really gunpowder. The gunpowder had toluene which kept the mind more controlled and drugged, providing the perfect soldier that obeyed a command given.

Surprisingly, the meal given to the children worked. Success rates increased during training exercises over the past three weeks.Everyone responded on time. And if there were mistakes, then the only reason would be that one the kids heard wrong or didn't eat. It especially  worked on Jack. The gunpowder made him  _forget_ his birthday.

Jack wasn't assigned to lead missions yet, which was fine by him. All he did was keep track of attendance and join everyone in strenth training. The more advanced mission weren't assigned until later on, which he looked forward to doing.

 

When the time to begin the advanced field exercises  finally arrive, the previous teams that were used to compete against each other split up into new groups. Each group held  members that were chosen to be together  because of their unique traits. Luckily for Jack, Jubari wasn't assigned in his group. Jack was assigned with five boy's who were small and looked like runners, two of whom were more of fighters, four whom were sneakers, and the rest were gunners.

 _Thirteen,_ he counted.  _There are thirteen members in this group, including me._

He wondered why he was wearing a red bandana while everyone else was wearing their blue ones. He also wore boots and camo-pattern pants while everyoneelse wore no shoes and only shorts. His thoughts stopped once he saw Solidus appear in front of everyone. "Listen up!" He called out.

"You are all now in the Army of the Devil, and you have yet to prove yourself to be apart of the Small Boy Unit squad! Jack here is the only member in the squad, since he is the leader. All of your groups are training to see which group will serve him the best and fight with me in the war." 

Jack could feel gazes burn his skin. He wasn't hated, but he wasn't liked either. And to everyone, it seemed as if he was giving such authority just because he killed twelve boys in one day. But it was more than that, and he knew it.

Once Solidus gave the motion to move, the children including eleven troops traveled to a nearby forest. It was perfect for the training. It tested speed, sneaking, and teamwork skills. Once they reached the entrance, he sent out four of him men to head inside and set the parameters. The forest wasn't big at all, but  it wasn't too small where you could see the end from the start. The remaining men gave each group  one radio to speak in while Solidus gave out further instructions.

"In this training, you will be using he elements of stealth and cunning. Since Jack is advanced, he won't be having a radio, which will teach him how to survive without one. As you can see, everyone except him has a blue bandana, but he has red. It is because the object of the game is that he will  _steal_ one bandana  from each group while you try to steal his. "

A loud murmur of chattering filled the silent forest. Was it fair that everyone had to steal Jack's bandana-who also has not way of communication- while he has to steal  _six_ of theirs? Didn't they have the advantage?

 

No, they didn't. For Jack was  _briefed_ on this mission. Every person had a purpose on the mission. He had to realized that he might have no way to communicate if left alone and will need to find a way to escape the area. Everyone else's learning was about using teamwork to hunt an enemy down before it does it to them. Also, Jack was informed of the coordinates of the forest. He knew every tree and hole to hide in to avoid running into teams constantly. He didn't need a map to navigate; he had learned how to use trees. It was  _him_ that had the advantage.

"Now, the rules!" Solidus blurted out, catching everyone's attention again. "You may kill, harm, or torment anyone in this training. If you see anything syspicious, then use your radio to contact me or  any other adult. Do not take action on anything unless you have reported it to me. Once you find the target, you must take its bandana and report it through your radio, then  you run for the exit or anywhere else out of the woods. If Jack takes your bandana, then he will announce it on the radio if he manages to steal one. Remember, you still have the chance to take back your flag until it has left the area! Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Alright then. Jack, you go on ahead and find a place to hide. You have two minutes."

Jack nodded and took off into the tree populated ecosystem. Two minutes was all he needed, for he knew a trick: If he hid near the entrances as a starting location, not only would the children be able to run past him, but he would  _see_ where they were going. It was a win-win for him. He noticed a large tree with leaves that would be perfect to conceal himself. He climbed up the tree, using the ivy, and sat in a high branch. The area was perfect. He was concealed while he could spot the upcoming children and look at the paths that they take.

Once the children were released, each team split off into different directions. This was going to be harder than expected. He had to pick one Tage and stick to it. He chose a team that had a lot of large people in it; it would be easier to take and run off than having people who are his size be. The team headed up north of the area, and stood out like a giraffe among sheep. They took no cover whatsoever, which would be a bad thing if this were a real mission. 

As he stalked them for a bit, he listened to the occurring conversations in the team, carefully eavesdropping  while exchanging from tree to bush to holes to hide into to avoid notice.

"Hey, why is this kid so popular with Boss?" One of them asked. Another kid replied, "It's because he technically adopted him as his own son after his parents died."

"You think he killed his parents?"

"Who?"

"Boss."

" _Shh!_ What if someone hears us? Anywho, probably not. There would have been no reason to let White Devil live if he killed his parents. Also, he's not that type of person."

"You think White Devil killed his own parents?" One kid piped. A loud laughter filled the air, definitely  giving away their position, if no one had tracked them yet. Jack's blood rushed. How dare they? How dare they claim that he was the one who killed his parents how dare they claim to think that George did it? These children were lucky that violence was prohibited, or else he would teach them a lesson to remember.

Without any  warning, he quickly abandoned his hiding  spot and snuck up behind the farthest  person of the team.He carefully took the radio from the boy's back pocket and slowly placed it in his own pocket. Now came the hard part- retrieving  the bandana.

There was no other choice but to snatched it and run. He grabbed a nearby brachial with leaves and stuck it in front of the boy while stealing the item, causing a great commotion. One of the boy's teammates noticed and shouted out loud.

"There he is! Don't let him escape!"

Jack immediately bolted after having what he needed. He figured that he could outrun them through a thick area of trees. Also, he had the advantage of speed, since he had shoes while the others did not. They kept on stopping a bit to recover from every sharp thistle or branch that they step on. Luckily, he managed to escape quickly by climbing trees and moving from there.

He turned on the radio and spoke. "George, I have successfully retrieved the first flag from team 3. Their coordinates  are up north." Jack only gave the information that was needed. He knew that the radios connected to all of the other ones, so having one person communicate will give everyone the chance to hear.

" _Excellent work, Jack. You may continue the assignment as planned."_

 _"_ Understood."

The other teams were easy. Most of them were too out in the open or every member was spread apart, believing that splitting up could cover more ground to find him. He successfully  nabbed each band a from team 1,2,5,6, and 7.

Team four was where trouble began.It was the team that a perfect combination of skills. And apparently, the members  _knew how to use trees for scouting and hiding, just like Jack._ Once he had targeted  a team four member, another one had spotted Jack and alerted the rest of the team, causing each one to come out of their hiding spots and focus on him.

He was high in a tree, which would have been easy to escape the area, until one of the children threw a rock at his forehead, causing him to fall backwards yet luckily landing in a pile of leaves. 

 _I need to return to George to get my wound healed, which means that I have to abandon the mission!_ he thought. Hopefully, because he recieved six bandanas, he wouldn't get yelled at by anyone for aborting the mission. The only problem was to get out of here. He managed to get up, his vision being all blurry. It cleared enough for him to be able to navigate his way out of the forest; however, he wasn't as graceful as before, since he was hitting multiple braces and bushes along the way. He could hear the team follow behing him, trying to retrieve the bandana and continue to make victory. 

As his vision began to worsen, he luckily made it out of the forest and ran into Solidus. The teams whose flags have been captured  were running laps and the soldiers were drinking water and discussion battle strategies.  Solidus managed to catch Jack as he collapsed from tiredness. He noticed that the boy had a large bloody scratch on his forehead, which trickled down to his nose. He was furious. He had specifically ordered no violence!

"Jack, can you see? Are you able to walk?" He asked, slowly sitting up the boy and giving him a concerned look. The child nodded slowly and began to speak solemnly.

"I'm sorry, sir. I caught six flags, but as I made my way to reach for the seventh, a was hit by a rock and fell off a tree I was standing in. I can walk, but my vision is blurred a bit and my energy feels depleted."

Solidus smiled reassuringle at Jack and handed him over towards the doctor. "Make sure that he is alright and has plenty of rest. He's earned it today." As soon as the doctor made off with Jack, he ordered everyone to form a line and prepare for a lecture.

"Now, I had  _specifically_ told you to not harm anyone. Didn't I make it clear?"

"Yes, sir!" Everyone responded together.

"And while Jack was doing his mission, it was reported that  _someone_ in team four threw a rock at his forehead, causing him to fall off a tree and ruin his vision for some time. Now, what I want to know is, who threw the rock?"

There was a long silence in the crowd. No one admitted  that they did it, rather they were too afraid to do so.

But Solidus didn't mind the silence... for he  _knew_ how to make people talk....

 

....................................

 

Jack was awakened by the doctor inside the medical room, where patients slept if not feeling well or after they were given medicine and their body needed to rest.. He rubbed his eyes sleepily and yawned.

"Boss requires to see you in the training arena right now," he informed while cleaning  the syringes. Jack wondered what he was needed for. Was he getting punished for aborting the mission?

Worried, he quickly left the area he was resting in and rushed towards the training area, where everyone was standing in formation, except a boy- who was on the ground, coughing. He skidded to a halt after arriving and recieved frightened looks from the children, giving Jack an awkward tingle. Solidus noticed him and  greeted him as if nothing was happening.

"Ah, Jack! I see that you are finally awake and that the doctor had healed your wound!" Jack touched where he was hit, only revealing a bandage wrapped around his head. The man continued and pointed at the boy who was coughing on the floor. 

"It appears that  _this_ rebel, took the liberty in disobeying my rule and assaulting you with an object that could have caused some serious damage.And that is wherected you come in." He signaled Jack over and placed him in front of the child.

"Jack is about to show what happens to people who disobey the rules and harm an ally. Normally, it would be death, but this is a training mission, so the only punishment now to have Jack beat the  _hell_ out of him."

He froze. He didn't want to harm the boy in front of him. What if it was an accident?  _But it could have been on purpose. After all, George did say that there would be children who don't approve of him being leader. He's not killing anyone, he's simply... punishing them. It also would serve him right since he ruined the mission..._ _  
_

_Enough!_ Jack shouted in his mind. What was he just thinking? That hurting someone was better than killing? Something was going on in his mind. Ever since he became the leader, his thoughts turned more into two different monds, arguing back and forth of what to do and what not to do. Also, he felt a strong pull whenever he was ordered what to do, and didn't even think of objecting.

"Go on." George urged. Even he was waiting. "Do whatever you must to teach him a lesson."

Jack raised his foot, causing the boy to flinch, and flicked it up his chin, making a tiny kick that displeased Solidus.

"Harder, Jack. You need to kick harder." He ordered more sternly.

He kicked uarder, making the child yelp.

"Harder, Jack!"

He kicked a little harder.

" _Harder, Jack! Kick his god damn face as hard as you can!"_

Suddenly, an inner chain snapped inside of him. His mind felt his agressiveness   increase and his mind felt pressured to the point. His leg jerked to the side, giving a hard kick to the boy's face. He collapsed  on the floor and was whining in pain. If he wasn't tied up, he would have escaped. But alas, fate had other plans for him.

"Good, now again."

Jack did as he was told. He kept on giving forceful kicks at the boy's face and kneeing him. He felt a certain satisfaction of hearing the sound of a gasp of air being forced out of a body, and he loved the sight of the blood trickling from the cuts and bruises. After repeating the process and making the children cringe, the boy was knocked out cold and Solidus called off the moment.

"That's enough Jack. This boy has learned his lesson. You have done well in both the training and being a true leader."

Hearing the compliment was enough to overrule the mysterious  satisfaction  from harming the child.The teams were horrified from the sight. Some stepped back from formation, then returned to their position fearing that they would be next for a beatino

Jack didn't care anymore if he was feared. _He just need them to obey._

 


	3. Gone

" _Sir? Sir! Mr. Raiden! Get up!"_

The therapist was shaking the cyborg vigorously. Raiden was screaming in his sleep, causing scratches on the couch and on his artificial skin, revealing the cybernetic parts. If he hadn't revealed his cyborg body, then the professor would just assume that he was having a bad nightmare and wake him up when it was over. However, Raiden  _didn't_ inform him what he really was, which scared the man.

The cyborg's eyes flew open and he sat up immediately, making the therapist jump back and step away slowly. Raiden realized what had happened and looked down at his body. His suit was ripped a bit and his artificial skin has a big slash across his chest to his lower ribs. _Damn it,_ he groaned to himself. He just revealed that he was a cyborg infront of a civilian, which was what made him feared. 

Ignoring the shocked expression given by the man, he stood up and grabbed the blanket from a nearby chair. It was red with a checkered pattern to it. It wasn't very stylish, but it was long enough to cover his marks.

"You mind if I use this?" He asked, his vocal chords rumbling from the earlier scream.

The man nodded quickly and cleared his throat, trying to remain calm. "Y-y-you... you're not  _human._ " He stated shakily.

Raiden frowned at the comment. How many times has he heard this, over a hundred? Every time he revealed his cyborg body the person who witnessed it would back away and call him a monster or tell him that he wasn't human. Even people with mechanical limbs were afraid. They thought that it was too huge of a step.

 _And he hated it._ The frightened stares, the rude pointing, and sometimes screaming from the ones who got to close or saw his body underneath the skin. It wasn't his fault, he was made into a machine without a say in it. He had to go through as much pain and fear as everyone else did.

"I am human." He corrected the therapist. "I just have a cyborg body. You should be used to seeing things like that nowadays. His words sounded harsh, which he didn't mean to do. But someone has to stop the nonsense going around. 

"Of- of course." He coughed, moving a little bit closer to Raiden. "But I just never seen a cyborg as a  _civilian."_

He understood. It was true, the cyborgs who had machines as bodies were usually dangerous and worked in military fields or sometimes as part of the police crew. But seeing one as a civilian was even more alarming. Plus, the fact that Raiden is the only cyborg civilian with a metal body.

"My nightmare," he changed the subject, "I had a nightmare."

"Oh," The therapist sat down but didn't bother to take the clipboard in his hands. "What was it about?"

"I was in..." He paused. What should he say? The man was already frightened enough; should he say anything about tormenting someone the man would probably run. "Military training"he finished.

"I see. I have encountered men with bad memories of being in battle, and how it has haunted them in their dreams at times. But how come you have more severe ones? Is it because you're a--"

"I'm  _not_ having nightmares because I am a cyborg." Raiden interrupted. "I was fighting at a very young age."

"Ah... I see." Now the man understood. "Memories since childhood tend to linger on longer than memories of adulthood. It is usually because your brain is in early development of learning and will take a time of experience into a linger lesson. Such as when you burn your finger on a stove, you tend to fear cooking or fire. Or if you fall off a chair or tall object, you tend to develop the fear of heights. So you were a... child soldier?"

"Thank you. But I have to go." Raiden excuse himself. He covered his shoulders with the blanket, which draped all the way down to to his knees. The answer was helpful, but the comment after that was something he refused to talk about, especially after having the nightmare. He ignored the goodbye and left the room, then out of the building, he walked towards his car and stepped inside, dropping the blanket in the back. He placed the keys in the ignition and drove towards his apartment. On the way, he was remembering the details from his dream. 

 _The boy didn't deserve to be punished,_ he regretted, _he was just as afraid as I was._

Once he finally reached his destination, he walked up the small steps and  opened the door to his apartment- no, _it was already forced open._  Having a sharp stab of panic go through him, he rush inside, only to finding the place in a messy state. The couches were flipped over and the pictures and television had cracks in them. The room was dark and the curtains were ripped. Raiden felt a dark energy fill the room. It made him worry. He felt pressured- that feeling when two objects are squeezing your mind and it feels like you're about to explode.

"Rose?! John?!" he called out, his voice cracked with worry. What happened here? He frantically searched the rooms, but none had John playing with his toys or Rose reading her romance novels. They were just dark and everything was tossed over and ripped. Luckily, there was no blood anywhere, which men that they weren't killed on sight, and there could be a slight chance that they are alive. 

It was right until he was about to call the police when he noticed a small note on the home phone charger. It was neatly folded and was leaning again the charger undisturbed.  He opened it and read the horrbile handwriting.

'YOU TOOK EVERTHING  I HAD, SO NOW, I'M GONNA TAKE EVER THING YOU HAVE. THIS MESSAGE WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU     LA-TER, SO MAKE SURE THAT YOU LOOK FOR THE  LI-TTLE C-LU-ES IN  THIS LE-TTER IF YOU WANT TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR FAMILY IS LO-CATED.

 

\--FROM,

YOU KNOW WHO I AM"

 

Raiden's artificial blood chilled. What happened to his family? He was only gone for an hour, so how could someone have that much time to know when to strike? That person who had claimed to know him, he or she must know him _very_ well if they would know about him and his family, not to mention his current location considering how the information is supposed to be  _private._  

But wait... the mysterious kidnapper could have been someone that Raiden just met.

The therapist!

It was the only logical reason. He just told him about himself, and Rose had talked to the man about arranging an appointment. And the fact that he was asleep when.... no. He  _couldn't_ have taken Rose and John while he was asleep! Could he? He did mention that he would have let him continue his nightmare if he didn't realize that Raiden was cyborg.

He can't risk this... his family is somewhere out there- and the therapist was the only clue he got. Took the note with him and bolted out of the apartment door and raced towards his car. He exited out of the parking  lot and made his way towards the therapist's  office. Hoping that he wouldn't miss him, the frantic cyborgs ran briskly down the hall, disturbing every session with the other patients, and made it inside his room that he was in before. The therapist was sitting at his desk reading over the notes, the noticed Raiden- who was in his cyborg body without any clothes. He jumped and back away in the corner, only making Raiden's suspicion rise ever higher.

"Where are they?!" He growled, his vocal chords rumbled into a lower pitch which made him sound like a monster. 

"I-I..." the man sputtered. He was confused. Why was this cyborg so furious? Was it about what he had said earlier? He wanted to ask what was the matter, but fear had him choking back his words, for Raiden's appearance and approach were both frightening. 

"I said,  _where- are- they?"_ He demanded with a scratchy voice, almost as if his "other side" was the one doing the talking. His eyes were burning with anger, yet on the inside... Raiden felt as if he was about to crack. As if his whole life and world was on a ticking time bomb. He hated the feeling of being pressured- having the desperation of doing something or else something is at risk of being lost from you... forever.

The cyborg was getting impatient. He ignore the small wimper from the man and walked over to him, picking him up by the shirt and holding him high. 

"When I ask you question, you fucking answer it unless you want to get hurt." He snarled.  _Oh, shit!_ He cursed in his mind. Raiden only swore if he was mad or his inner ripper erupted from inside. Right when he pulled out his sword, ready to slash the therapist, he began to laugh evily and psycoticly, he eyes flashing a crimson red. Then suddenly, a memory flashed in his mind:  He rembered how he rarely cursed at all. He avoided cursing in front of his family, or else he would be scolded for it from Rose.

" _What did I tell you about swearing in front of John?! He's only nine!"_

_"Well, how the hell am I supposed to keep myself from doing it?"_

_"Jack!"_

_"Oooooh! Daddy said the 'H' word!"_

_"Oh shit, my bad, Rose! Ugh! God damnit!"_

That was when Rose would pull out her wooden spoon that she used for cooking and smack his face with it. What was funny was how he would be holding her arms while she would struggle to hit him, and John would be laughing wildly in the background, thinking it was an act... but it wasn't. Raiden and Rose have been having a lot of problems, just like from after the Big Shell mission. They have been growing apart too. Thankfully, it if wasn't for John, who was keeping them together, than they probably would have divorced or never gotten married.

_And maybe none of this would have happened._

 

Raiden began to break down and dropped the poor man on the floor. He crouched low to the ground and covered his face, emitted a low whine. He couldn't cry. His tear ducts were removed when he was tested on by the Patriots. His life was ruined since then. All of his memories and life choices were continued by them- even Rose was working for them, which was the main reason why they were both falling apart. He didn't trust Rose like he used to before. He fears that one day, she will abandon him and John and admit that she was a spy again and just had kids with him to make him trust her. He didn't want that. He didn't want to be hurt  _again._ All his life.. was nothing but pain and agony. His life was a lie, and everyone he knew either died, didn't want anything to do with him, or will die soon enough. He could never keep loved ones close by him without fearing of them being harmed by 'Jack', his true nature.

The cyborg was moaning in sadness, which echoed the silent, stagnant room. Raiden was on the brink of losing his mind. He couldn't take it anymore. First, he had an argument with his wife, then had a nightmare, and then his family was missing. Not to entice that Jack had begun to show up. He felt as if he truly did lose everything- his family and his sanity. 

The therapist was breathing hard and anxiously grabbed the phone that was sitting on his desk. The phone was shaking in his pale hands dramitically, making it hard to dial the police without pressing the wrong number and having to start all over. Right when he was about to call the police, Raiden interrupted the call by cutting the telephone chord. Yes, it was  _that_ old. 

"Don't bother calling them." He murmured quietly, giving a whole new attitude in his tone- solemn. He stood up and picked up his sword that he dropped earlier. He glance at the man, who was pale and frightend to death. His eyes flickered around the room to see if there w as any way to escape the cyborg or cal for help, but there was nothing so far- unless he wanted to commit suicide and jump out of the window.

Raiden stared at his face and gave a blank  stare at him. "I'm sorry for what happened. My family was recently kidnapped and I assumed it was you." He explained, now realizing that this man obviously wasn't the criminal. 

The therapist nodded quickly then swallowed. He stood up, loosing his balance a little from all of the shaking. Right when the cyborg was about to exit the room, he mentioned, "If it helps, I-I saw a man... I saw a man who was wearing a huge trench coat and asked about you. I told him that you left, and then he just told me to hand you this card." He pulled a card from his front pocket and slowly handed it to him, almost dropping it.

Raiden took the card and examined it carefully. 

"O' THEY FARM-LIVED." It said. What did that mean? Who was "they"? What farm? Every word on the letters he was given could have been a clue, but they are too hard to comprehend. 

Raiden stood in silence then left the room, leaving the therapist on the floor taking asprin pills. He opened his codec and contacted a friend of his, someone who he knew he could trust- Boris. 

He knew what to do. He had helped him out ever since he was turned into the cyborg he is today. He also helped him out is the mission to defeat Senator Armstrong and save the children from having their brains removed by Desperado and World Marshal. Boris was a good man, and he cared for Raiden's family too. He remembered that one time when Boris had sent John a Russian toy jet and gave Rose a cooking pot that would last through anything- which came in handy at that time when her cooking was more like a science experiment. His son would love the gives he was given and called him "the cool Russian dude." It made Raiden smile inside whenever John was happy.  _It shows that he is having a hell of a better life than I did,_ Raiden thought. 

It was true. When he was a kid, he had to actually drive trucks and kill soldiers rather than playing with toy models. All his life was built on training and survival... and he wanted John to have to part of it. Somehow, it feels like he is reliving his childhood whenever he is around his son. It makes him feel secure and his past disappears at the moment. But whoever kidnapped him... that person's going  to  pay dearly for making John live the life the way he did before. 

It was only a matter of time until Boris finally picked up. He sounded lazy and didn't seem to realize who he was talking to yet.

"Hello, welcome to Maverick Corp. Blah blah blah, what do you need?"

Raiden made a face. Was this how he sounded to people? "Hey Boris, if you keep on talking like that to people, you'll lose customers and employers."

Raiden heard a cough and the noise of stuff falling of a desk in the background of the codec. He then heard Boris cursing and muttering about how hot it was.  _It? Oh, he just spilled his coffee,_ Raiden thought. He couldn't help but chuckle a bit.

"Riden? Is that really you?" Boris asked with a am amazement.

"What gave it away?" He replied sarcastically, he couldn't help himself.

"But it really is you!"

"Why are you talking as if I have been missing forever?"

"Well, after you left the company, Maverick felt... well... empty."

"Well, I feel honored that someone has missed me while I was gone."

They both made an awkward laugh, then Raiden turned serious after remembering what he needed to say.

"Boris, something... happened."

"What is it?"

"My family's been kidnapped."

There was a dead silence as he continued to walk towards his car. The Russian male cleared his throat and replied with concern.

"Do you know who did it?"

"Look, Boris, if I knew where they were, would I be asking you?! No, I would be cutting and slashing the hell out of who caused this!"

Raiden realized that he was yelling and immediately  apologized. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that. It's been a rough day for me today."

Boris nodded and spoke. "I understand. Having a mysterious  person kidnap or steal what you love most can be quite life shattering, especially  for what's happening now."

Raiden paused. "What's going on?"

"You don't know? For the love of... you need to wake up  _tovarisch! Children have been kidnapped from ages four to thirteen! "_

"What?! But Desperado  was--"

"It's not Desperado this time. We believe that this person was someone we never seen or heard of before."

"I doubt that..."

"Beg pardon?"

"After I found out that my family was missing, there w as a note claiming that the person knows me- no, that  _I know the person."_

"I see... In an hour, a jet will arrive for you at the airport, only for you. It is one of our jets, so you need not worry about who else Wil be involved. Once you are on the jet, it will take you to here and we can discuss everything."

"But Rose and John... what if they're still--"

"I can assure you that if they claim to know you, than they will certainly  not be keeping them where you are. Plus, if the kidnapper is also involved with the other children's missings, than it would most likely be held somewhere else that is less crowded."

Raiden bit his bottom lip as he turned the keys and drove towards the airport. "I'm on my way. See you then." And with that, he turned off the codec screen and focused on the road, gripping the wheel  tightly. He gaze was locred on the road in front of him as if he was waiting for something to pop up and get hit by his car. Anger was building up inside of him. He then heard a low growl in his head.

_'Let's make these bastards  pay for what they did to us. Slit their throats, make them bleed to death. You do miss the feeling of warm blood on your skin, right?'_

"Shut up!" Raiden  shouted at his consious. It was Jack, he was always the one saying who to kill and what to do. It was him that came out when having nightmares or having his ass kicked. It was him that gave Raiden the pleasure from killing people. However... he was just a voice in his head. It hadn't appeared before. Only when after he was torture in Big Shell in order to have his memories back. Perhaps the voice was the Patriots. No, they're gone.

But Jack the Ripper or not...

Someone's going to pay... someone's going to get shredded by the Ripper.

 

 

 


	4. In Need

After landing in the Maverick facility from the jet, Raiden was greeted by his old friends who were already standing in the zone. The first one to walk up was Kevin, who gave him a welcoming bro hug

. "Good to see ya, buddy!" He said cheerfully. How long was Raiden gone for, almost three months? So why was everyone treating him as if he left for years? Was he that special?

Courtney followed up and just gave him a warm smile, then ended with a worried glance. "We heard about your family... I'm sorry that it happened." Raiden felt strange receiving sudden apologies from people. It didn't feel right; usually, it was  _him_ that had to apologize.

"It's fine, Courtney. But thanks for your concern, it really shows how much you care." He replied, hinting a small tone of teasing at the end of the sentence. The blonde woman scoffed and playfully slapped his shoulder, which was harmless since his body was metal. "Well,  _of course_ I care! You're our friend!" 

"That's right. And we're here to help find your family and solve the mystery of the kidnapped children." Kevin added, showing full support in his voice. 

Raiden nodded in appreciation. It felt good to have friends like Kevin and Courtney. They were always so supportive and strong spirited. He sure was glad that he chose them to help them out... or rather, that he chose  _the right people for the job._ This was Maverick he was talking about. It was his former job, and he remembered  the time where they had to protect the prime minister, N'mani.

 _But I failed at protecting him. Some bodyguard I turned out to be._ He decided that remembering the past was not really a good time at the moment, but his thoughts traveled father.

Now that he thought about it, Raiden  _was_ acting unstable during the field mission. His more hostile side arose quite frequently. Come to think of it,  _it was really "Jack" who accomplished the mission,  not Raiden._

Ad that was what he feared would happen. He didn't want his dark side to take control of him, for it has already done so in his sleep. Perhaps, the one who is behing the new event, could also be linked with him? The person did ask for his information and got hold of his wife and son, so it would possibly mean that the two were somehow connected...

As the three adults kept on walking, Raiden's thoughts and theories became out of control. His family was on the line, and who knows how much time they have? He walked briskly ahead of the trio and headed inside the office where he encountered  Doktor  and Boris. The office was large. It was different from where the crew worked at when they were doing the previous mission and Raiden was out on the field. There was a desk infront of the room and in the back lie a large round table with a projecter on top. On the sides of the room, there were three computers each, but they were tuned off at the moment.

"Ah! Welcome,  _tovarisch!"_ The Russian greeted with open arms and a wide, welcoming grin. Doktor just pushed his glasses a slight bit upwards and made a simple smile, yet it too, felt heartwarming. Once the crew was inside the office, Kevin shut the door and  turned off the lights, then turning on the projector which served as the only light. 

The cyborg sat in one of the chairs located on the long idea of the table. Boris, who loved to be the boss of things , sat a the head of the table, while Kevin sat next to Raiden and Courtney say across from him. Doktor was the only one who was standing, for he was the or who was presenting infront of the projector.

"By hearing the news, I'm pretty sure that you have all been briefed on what has been happening recently about the missing children." He began. Raiden though for a moment.  _Doktor's German accent seemed to be a lot thicker than he remembered._ Everytime he spoke a word that had a "T" in it, it would sound as a "z" instead.

Everyone nodded at Doktor's  statement. He proceeded to speak. " And unfortunately, Raiden's family was kidnapped around the same time the whole thing began."

Everyone nodded again, but this time, less of a full nod and more slightly, as if they wanted to see where he was gong with this. Raiden, however, sat motionless. His eyes were glued to the presenter, as if the words coming from his mouth would suddenly turn into a monster. He needed to focus, in order to understand what he needed to search for.

Doktor continued. " So that would mean that the two criminals have to either be the same person, or somehow connected. But that is not what I am looking for..." He pointed to the cyborg. "Raiden, you mentioned that you recieved two notes from the kidnapper,  _ja?_ Would you mind if I look at them?"

Raiden pulled out the two notes  and handed them to the German's hands. He read over it carefully, leaving the rest of the group to sit in silence. After a couple of minutes of murmuring and reading it to himself, Doktor finally announced his discovery.

"Aha! I have solved the letter!"

Raiden jumped from his seat, exited to hear the news. "Which letter did you solve?"

"The first one you recieved!"

Raiden, along with the rest of his friends, all left their seats and rushed where the note was facing on the table, trying to see if they could understand it themselves.

"I... don't see anything wrong with it. All it says is to look for the clues." Kevin scratched his head.

"Perhaps, he means the second note?" Boris suggested.

"Doktor, none of these guesses will get us anywhere. Do you know what is means?" Raiden asked, feeling rushed.

The proffesor  typed the note on the computer, which was hooked up to the projector, and displayed a larger version of the letter... except, he only typed the important part.

 

THIS MESSAGE WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU LA-TER, SO MAKE SURE THAT YOU LOOK FOR THE LI-TTLE C-LU-ES IN THIS LE-TTER IF YOU WANT TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR FAMILY IS LO-CATED.

"I don't get it," Courtney admitted bluntly. Kevin and Boris both shrugged. Raiden, however, stared deeply at the words. He tried to reread the sentences to see if there was a pattern, and there was: certain parts of the words were isolated. But that was as far as he could think of.

"The words," he began, "they have chopped up parts in them."

Doktor smiled encouragingly  at him. "Precisely! But if you read those seperated words carefully, then what do they spell?"

Raiden read aloud, "La, li, lu, le, lo...  _holy shit. I solved it."_

Doktor thought for a minute and rubbed his chin. "Now the only problem, is what the words actually mean."

"No, there is no problem, I solved it." Raiden announced with deep marvel at his own discovery.

"La li lu le lo... does anyone know what it is?" He asked to see if anyone would catch one, but only looks of confusion returned his gaze.

"Well, in Japan, it is used s a training method in order to pronounce "L" correctly in english. The vowels at the end is their oder of the vowels." Courtney informed. Raiden raised his eyebrow and dismissed the idea.

"That's true, but that's not it. The la li lu le lo... they're the  _Patriots."_

Everyone gasped and dropped their mouths open.

"The... Patriots? As in the master conto less or everything? " Kevin sputtered in shock.

"Then that would mean..."

"No, the Patriots were destroyed a log time ago by me and another soldier. They're definitely  not behind  this." Raiden  interrupted.

"Then, who could it be?" Boris asked.

"That is why we need to understand the second note in order to know," Doktor added. "However, it appears that I have not idea when it's saying: O' THEY FARM-LIVED."

"Hmm... sounds strange... yet, so familiar, in a way. I feel as if I have heard it somewhere." Raiden mumbled. The phrase was familiar indeed, but he had no idea where he had heard it.

Boris did a big yawn. "Well, I would love to continue this conversation, but it is getting late and we have to get up early tomorrow if we want to jump ahead of the kidnapper."

Everyone agreed, well, Raiden grunted in response. It wasn't a grunt of objection, but it showed that he heard him and understood, yet something was on his mind as he was staring a the second note. His train of thought was broken by a question.

"Hey buddy, where will you be sleeping? Your apartment got destroyed and you are more than an hour away from New York." It was Kevin. He was concerned for his friend's well being, especially  after what had happened.

"I don't really plan on sleeping tonight." Raiden shrugged. He didn't want to have another nightmare two times in a day.

"No, Raiden. You must sleep. Your cyborg body requires sleep  in order to charge, unlike your battle suite, which requires electroits. However, the building does have a sleeping chamber for employees  who work overnight. Perhaps you can use that for the time being u til we find your family again."

The cyborg groaned and slowly stood up. He didn't bother to wait for the members to escort him to the room- he knew where it was. He said goodnight to his friends and walked down the corridors and main rooms and labratories, while along the way, recieved marvel glances and proud looks from the scientists.  _They were the ones who made Raiden's body._

He had to admit, it felt good to have positive glances from people than negative ones. He felt as if Maverick was home, since he was treated equally and wasn't judged based off his appearance. And the company seemed to have missed him a lot while he was gone too.

 Once he reached the room, he opened the door and went inside. To many people, the room was boring. It had a bed with grey sheets and a destroyed with a lamp. There were no pictures and no windows. To Raiden, this place looked  _perfect._ it was just a room for sleeping in, nothing more, nothing less. He remembered when Rose had entered his room secretly and saw the same boring features. He regretted that time when he slapped her across the face, furiousfrom what she had done.

Trying to forget the depressing memory, he sat on the mates of the bed and waited a while u til he felt ready to sleep. To him, preparing for rest was more like preparing for jumping of a plane and skydiving. He's afraid that he'll love control and fall to his fears, as if he was really doing the sport. 

Although he was laying down, his eyes remained opened, staring at the ceiling. The thoughts from earlier have returned. 

_How is Rose and John doing? Who was behind all of this? Will he see his family again? Was this really his fault?_

As Raiden began to done of, the questions re a in ed to echoed in his mind... as if his nightmares didn't do enough. 

As he closed his eyes and tiredness began to consume him, he heard a familiar voice that echoed in his mind. He couldn't tell if it was from his dream that was begining or if it was one of his quesrions. 

 

 

 _'Rest, you'll need it for the next mission.'_ it said.

 

 


	5. Controlled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very sorry for the long wait guys! I had something come up so I was occupied for a while. Anywho, I hope that this chapter was worth the wait, and I made it a little bit longer.
> 
> Have a nice day!^^

 A hard fist made contact with Jack's face, making a disturbing sound of cracked knuckles. The boy recieved a blow to the gut and powerful kick at his ankles, causing him to lose balance and collapse on the floor. He felt blood trickle from his wound on his left side of his face and a sore bruised below his ribs. Agonizing pain stung throughout his entire body.  _He was being punished... again._

The man who stood before him was Kamsen, who had beaten up Jack before when he woke up late and held up training on the first day. He did warn the boy that punishment would be more severe as the year continues, but Jack didn't think he would be hurt  _this_ bad. He was six now, yet his body was still growing and weak. He was too young to take punches properly and got injured easily. 

 _You're soft, boy. We're  just toughening your soft skin,_ George would always say to him whenever he complained how he was unfairly treated compared to the other children. It wasn't fair; if one of the boys messed up, then they would recieved a slap across the face and recieve half of their dinner. However, if  _Jack_ messed up, then he would recieve a harsh beating infront of the teams and not have dinner at all. He sometimes wondered why he was treated strictly, but then he remembered: Since he was going to be ahead of everyone and had to be in charge of everything, including people's lives and missions, then there would be absolutely  _zero_ tolerance  for mistakes. If the whole nation was going to rely and sacrifice their lives in the name of him, then he had to know responsibility  so well like it was his own name.

"You really did mess up this time, kid." Kamsen growled. He grabbed the boy by the shirt and lifted him high in the air. "This is the  _fourth_ time this week that you messed up!"

The fourth time. Ever since he was forced to beat the kid for breaking a rule by accident, he lost control in hiself. He began to freak out and worry if he would ever do such a thing like that again.  _It just didn't feel right,_ he told himself. All the more frightening, he wondered on what that sudden obedience and pleasure came from when striking the boy. All he remembered was George yelling a command, and suddenly, he felt some sort of jerk in his mind, as if he was on a leash and those words had forced him to obey. _Like a wolf- No- a dog,_ Jack thought. He was right. He was a wolf being "tamed" into a dog who would take orders. However, the satisfaction that surged through his mind... it felt-  _refreshing._

His instinct felt rewarded for accomplishing a task. It was as if each kick he inflicted on the child, a stronger shock of pleasure raced throughout his consious. He remembered how the blood that bled from the boy's broken nose... how he cringed in pain... how Jack felt, well-  _powerful._

But after that, the sudden snap had vanished, and once he realized what had happened, he was horrified. He refused to harm anyone again, which was the reason why he was being punished today. He  _failed a real mission._

The teams, along with a group of soldiers, were informed of a small enemy campsite that was located sixteen miles west from their current location. However, only the children were not informed of the  _civilians_ that resided there. Instead of walking, like what they usually did whenever traveling to a mission site, they instead rode in jeeps. If everyone was in jeeps for arriving somewhere, then the mission must be  _really_ important. Just who were they going to encounter, and what were they going to do?

The whole squad stopped a few kilometers away from the site to avoid detection. The teams were suited up and were given AK-47's and flash grenades, which men that these kids are  _actually_ preparing to fight, another big privilege. Everyone did have some experience with these weapons before in the assault and defense training, but having to use these for real missions, and real people... that was what got Jack  _anxious._  

He was afraid of hurting more people, like what he did to the boy. He wasn't sure if he could go through  _killing_ someone. He had  done it before, though- twelve times. But something was different about him then... he had no control it seemed. Maybe, he hoped, that whatever the urge to kill feeling he had earlier would come back for this mission. George mentioned that the commander of this site was an ally with the enemy, the ones who were said to have killed his real parents. Perhaps that could fuel his motivation like what he did before in training. Maybe he could get revenge...

Just maybe...

The two lead soldiers signaled the teams behing them to slowly creep forward into an empty house. The area was built like a maze.Almost every house and building were the same hieght and had the Sandy yellow color. They were also positioned randomly, to make the place even more confusing.  _But the structure of the area could serve as an advantage to us if we werecomprimised,_ Jack nodded to himself. 

One by one, everyone crouched and snuck in an orderly line throughout the empty part of the area. Strange, Jack wondered, why was this part so deserted? It wasn't before long before they heard a loud cheer from the center of the site, which alerted the whole crew and made everyone go prone.

"False alarm. It appears that the place is having some sort of celebration, " one of the lead soldiers informed the startled army. He then smiled. "And this could be a perfect chance to attack." Along with the other lead commanders, they seperated each team and had them be lead by an adult soldier. Every team was assigned a path to take around the site, ad was warned of staying low.

"I'll have three groups spread out in three main points of the site, taking out the watchtowers. Once that's done, the leading adults will all have to signal me in order for our next routine to begin, " the lead stated, pointing to every member. "The next thing will be next two groups. They will blend in with the crowd by putting on loose clothing on top of your uniforms. Some of the two group members will be hiding in the background to make sure nothing is wrong. And finally..." He concluded, pulling in Jack next to him. "Jack and I and the other leads will be right behind of the speaker or whoever is causing the ruckus. After we assassinated the target, then the two groups will shoot at the crowd and nearby enemies, while the three other teams will shoot out the fleeing people who try to escape the area and take out the soldiers."

Jack was stunned. His mission also involved  _killing_ innocent civilians? He thought that he was apart of the good guys, not the bad ones! Jack held his question in for later so he could   approach it at the right moment.  Everyone nodded and followed their orders, while he was dragged towards his new group that was made up of the most well trained soldiers out of their current groups. The lead commander motioned the team forward and zigzagged  from building to building until they reached the area which held the large ceremony.

There was a large stage, and infront of that, stood a crowd of around twenty to fourth people, not including his fellow teams, which he recognized in the crowd. The man on stage wore a  camouflage pattern suit with an AK and a Makarov strapped to his sides. He was African, no doubt, and wore black sunglasses and looked buff, yet a little short. He looked like an easy target, Jack thought. However, it was his bodyguards that looked tough. They were armed to the teeth! He wouldn't be surprised if they just completed a mission.

"Can you see him?" The lead asked the boy, eyes locked on the target.

"Who? The fat lamb or his two dogs?" Jack remarked bitterly, which surprised him. _That's new..._  He didn't know that would even come out of his mouth. To his relief, the adults chuckled quietly at the statement. They thought it was a joke- a funny one at that.

"Nice one, kid, and yeah- the  _lamb_ is our target. He is Malaki, the little brat who does most of the dirty work. The only way he is here is either he knows his bosses really well or that he has a reputation that proves usefulness to their army. He's either the coward who hides behind soldiers for help, or a courageous  man who just has tough men around him for show."

Jack was amazed at what he heard. How were these men briefed on this? How did they know? Come to think of it, the lead was the  _only_ one who knew about the target, while the others gave him a questioning  look. They must have thought the same thing. But what the lead know didn't , matter at the moment; he will tell George about it later on after the mission. The team swiflty snuck behind the crowd and around the stage behind the crates. But what they saw on top wasn't just an announcement...

_Someone was being executed._

It was a small Liberian boy, who looked around his age, but he was taller. He wore scrappy clothes and had tears streaming down his face as if faucets the flowed nonstop replaced his eyes. He was coached on the floor, face forced to the ground by Malaki's foot. Jack wondered what he was being punished for. He was used to seeing kids like that one who were kicked and beat, but that was because he knew why. No one deserves a punishment without a fair reason why. He remained his position, leaning against the crates along with his teammates.

"This _boy_ here is being trialed for treason!" Malaki announced, the crowd was roaring loudly. There were so far no cries of protest- which seemed bad for the boy. What did he do? "He is guilty for stealing food from the mess hall! He's shortening our supplies! What if he were giving this to the enemy?!" An uproar arose throughout the area. But those weren't sounds of objection- those were sounds of  _encouragement  and agreement._

 _This really wasn't good,_ Jack thought. Stealing food was punishable  for a beating... but death? No, that was too much. 

The boy on the stage whimpered through his tears. "I... I wasn't stealing for the enemy!  It was for my sister!" He was screaming over the crowd. Malaki smirked and pulled out his Makarov. 

"But your sister was dying, and now she is dead." He chuckled cruely, the sobbing of the boy grew louder, and his amusement increased.

Jack felt his blood boil inside him. They murdered his sister! Normally, he would just feel sorry for the boy and continue on... but... having to lose a family to someone...  _that was what made a huge impact to him._ He was young when he lost his family, and therfor  wasn't affected as a child losing his parents at an older age. However, this boy's sister was  _recently_  by one of the boy's allies. How could they? Jack wasn't exactly treated like a princess on his side, but having a fellow soldier murder your family member without a cause... that cannot go unpunished. He had to do something about this. Before he could process the thought, his body inched upward and around the stage stairs, which was right behind Malaki, but the two bodyguards  were in his way first, still facing forward.

"Hey, kid! What are you doing!?" The lead whispered sharply, unheard from the noise of the people. Jack though he heard something, but he ignored it. Whatever was about to be said can wait... Jack had a  _real_ mission. It didn't matter to him anymore who his target was- as long as he can save the life of that boy, his task would be complete. 

It wasn't until he realized that he didn't know how to take down the body guards before he had to save the boy. All he had was the hand knife that was given to him by George, which was quivering due to his shaking hand. Unfortunately, one of the crows people noticed the suspicious  looking boy with the weapon and screamed louldy, breaking the syncing  cheers. More people noticed and realized that they were bieng ambushed.Jack cursed to himself. He was stood there for too long, and suddenly, the two body guards turned around and jumped back, pulling out their guns.

Not good.

"Kid, get down!" The lead shouted behind him. Then, out of nowhere, two shots echoed the air, leaving two bullets in both of the bodyguards' foreheads. The crowd panicked and were fleeing from the area. Unfortunately  for them, more guns were being fired at the civilians from Jack's commrads, leaving nothing but dead bodies and pools of blood that made the dry sand red and sticky. There were nervous cries and screaming as the people were trying to flee the area, but the two teams assigned to the post were able to shoot them down. 

Jack's head clouded. He heard nothing but cries and gunshots. The smell of blood and death stung his nose, and the sight made his blood run cold. Was it because of him that these people were sent to a bloodbath? It would have happened anyway... but was there some way he could have avoided this? He felt a hole in his chest expand, leaving him breathing hard. In his mind, it was screaming at him to run; his instincts are ordering him to flee and be save- but the  _other_ feeling that was begining to appear... it told him to stay and fight. Jack felt powerful seeing the possible threats fall before  his comrades. All of the death and fear... he felt a hint of satisfaction  from it.

Malaki stepped off of the boy's  head backed away slowly, reloading his gun while threatening to shoot the boy. He just saw his army fall and cripple, by kids! It was the most humiliating thing that had happened to him so far. He frantically  looked around to see where his solders were, but they have all been killed. It was until then when he figured out that he was being ambushed. 

Jack took no hesitation into marching forward, pulling out his AK and aiming it at the man. If he shot the boy, then Jack was going to make him pay for that. "Drop you gun." He commanded, eyes furrowed. The man immediately obeyed and tossed his guns backwards and cautiously  reached for his radio. He pressed the button and murmured something that Jack couldn't make out, all the more suspicious.

"What did you say?!" He asked, his voice cracked with worry.

Malaki held his hands in the air as if he was surrendering. He gave an innocent look with a hint of fear. "I was just calling one of my comrades who took post at the edges of the camp. But I guess they are dead, correct?" Jack nodded, feeling  unsure of whether this guy was telling the truth or not.  A couple of moments passed by of the man complaining about how weak his soldiers were and how hard his life is.

 _He's stalling for something,_ Jack figured, but he continued to hear the man talk, making occasional glances at the boy who was curled up in a ball crying. The background was still filled with blood, cries, gunshots, and death.

"Shoot the man!" The lead soldier cried out to Jack, which caught his attention. "He's stalling!"

Jack narrowed his eyes and aimed straight for his forehead. "I'd love to hear more, but my orders are to kill you and return back to base."

The man chuckled, then laughed. Jack didn't see what was so funny, he was going to die, not listen to jokes. "Of course you will, child- just like what your boss wants. So you're the child soldiers that Solidus is training? HA! Listen to me, boy: you may be free minded for now, but what your boss does...  _It's inhuman._

"What do you mean?"

"My army has encountered your side before, they were the same children like you; were kids, had guns, and fought in war. However, when we noticed them, they weren't acting like kids. There were appeared to be  _mind controlled._ They were being manpulated. I remember those dead looks in their eyes like it was yesterday. They just listened and didn't respond. Hell, they didn't even talk much! All they said was 'Yes sir' and talked like slaves. It was creepy."

Was Jack going to be like this? Was this man lying? He would have asked for more about the topic, but a large buzzing sound ca me overhead.

A helicopter.

The man actually called for  _support_ instead of communicating with his dead comrades! Jack was about to pull the trigger until a machine gun from the chopper was shooting at his feet, making him step back and fall of the stage, yet it unfortunately  hit the crying boy, who gave a tiny screaming then lied still, blood pooling underneath and dripping of the platform.

He saw Malaki step into the chopper and fly off with a loud, mocking laugh. The gun fires had stopped and all of the groups rushed to where Jack was, realizing what happened .

"Damnit, kid! You let him get away!?" A member cried out. The rest  sighed with frustrated huff and cursed at Jack, who was string at the floor, processing what had just happened.

Mission failed.

\-----------------------------

 

 

After being almost beat to death by Kamsen, which was then nightfall afterward, everyone was called for the final meal of the day, except Jack, who was forced to go to bed early. He didn't mind not eating actually, the food had a weird taste to it now. And something in that food was making him act strange. It felt as if he was being  _drugged_ for some reason. But that couldn't be true... could it?

What Malaki had said earlier repeated itself in his mind like a broken record.  _They were being manipulated, drugged, and didn't even speak a word unless it was a response or command._ The background image burned in his mind too. The boy that he wanted to save died anyway, and his target escaped. The sight of people being slaughtered, the screams of the people... that was what scared him the most. If he was really going to be like those mind controlled children, then would he still be able to think normally? How would he react in battle? 

As those thoughts finally settled down, so did his heavy breathing and angry stomach. He close his eyes and fell asleep, ignoring the sound of the kids eating outside and smell of food. He even ignored the pain from the beating. After a long day's work, rest was the most rewarding of all. 

However, it was going to be the last peacful moment of Jack's life.


	6. Blade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was inspired from the Metal gear rising "make it right" trailer. If you have seen it and liked it, then you will probably find this chapter enjoyable as well. ^^
> 
> Have a nice day!

An aching pain echoed in Jack's head. His back felt hard and he felt like he had been sitting in a chair for hours. He lifted his head, which was leaning back for some reason, then fear rose in his body.  _He couldn't see, he was blind._

Pain grew as he rapidly blinked, hoping that his vision would clear up, but everything he saw was nothing but a blur or color and light. He would have screamed for help, but his vocal chords felt so dry that he could only manage a soft wheeze. His arms were cuffed to the chair, unabling  him to move. He had to think: Where could he be? All he remembered was that he fell asleep and woke up strapped to a chair. Could he be at Malaki's base? Was he going to be tortured?

No, it couldn't be. He would have had to been kidnapped if the enemy actually snuck inside his camp, which was impossible. They couldn't be intruders to steal him unless they came in with brute force, for he would have woken up immediatly. If he wasn't at the enemy base, then where was he?

He tried to use his senses that were still active. Whatever room he was in, it smelled of medicine and chemicals. The room was silent, except for a beeping monitor. His bounds hands were moving in place to touch what the chair was and how hard he was strapped. Then, the thought came to him.  _I'm in the hospital area of my camp!_

What was he doing here? Did he get hurt? Perhaps he was going to be scolded as usual from George about failing another mission.

But then, why would he go through extreme measures like these?

Jack's train of thought came to a halt when he heard an open and slam of the door. He heard  two footsteps. One was tough and slow paced, while the other seemed rapid and urgent.

"Out of all of the children I have trained over the years,  _you, Jack,_ are by far the most disappointing." The gruff voice spoke. It was George, who appeared to be unusually casual as he was confronting the situation. As the footsteps grew louder, Jack struggled harder to escape from the chair and kept on opening and shutting his eyes hoping for his vision to clear up, but nothing happened. Why wasn't his vision working yet? 

Once George was now standing infront of the boy, Jack felt another pair of hands press a sharp syringe into his neck. He wheezed in slight pain as a reaction, still having a dry throat. After a couple of moments in silence, Jack's  vision  began to fix itself. The blurred figures transformed into the two men: George and the doctor. His throat began to feel moist, he hummed to himself to test whether he was able to speak or not. Now that he knows what is going on, George began.

"I have raised you for, what... around  _three years_ now? Do you know how disappointed  I am to hear my troops report to me about your progress in the past weeks?" His tone sounded harsh, but his expression looked neutral. "'Sir, Jack is too weak! Sir, Jack has now become hesitant when killing people! Sir, Jack Jack Jack Jack!' Do you know how many times I have heard them say how soft you have become? Do you know how  _embarrassed_ I feel about someone, who I  _raised,_ to not meet the standards and to be seen as weak?!" 

Jack was cringing at every word the man spat as if it was venom. George was now furious. His casual face revealed it's true intense side. The man was now terrifying him. He wondered what will happen to him next after George finishes his rant. 

"Ever since I ordered you to punish that boy, you have been acting hesitant with using violence on anyone eles. But that is was confuses me. You appeared to  _enjoy_ inflicting harm at the most random moments. Maybe the gunpowder in the food doesn't have as much affect as it should have. No- I almost forgot: You are the one who usually misses out on dinner because of your actions, which means that the gunpowder hasn't been eaten by you in a while."

Jack must have heard wrong. There was  _gunpowder_ in the food? Why? Those things were used for guns!

"You're lying!" Jack screamed, having a few tears stream down his face. "You wouldn't put poison in our foods!"

George frowned at the boy, then gave a false reassuring smile. "No need to get worked up, boy. But it is true, we do put gunpowder in the food you eat. And you children only."

"Why?!"

"The gunpowder has toluene in it. It makes sure that you obey and follow orders. As you can see, your teammates have become less independent  and listened well, haven't they? But the fact that you haven't been eating, which means that you haven't had toluene, you are still able to have freedom in thought." Solidus explained. He was tired of hiding the truth. It was time to show Jack what he really was planning. It didn't even matter anyway- he was going to be controlled once again.

"Then... what Malaki said to me was true..." Jack whispered, feeling stunned. George raised his eyebrow. 

"So is that the reason why he got away? Because he distracted you?" He chuckled. Jack remained quiet.

"Listen, boy. I don't know what that bastard  said to you, but it is true. We  _do_ control child soldiers with drugs, but only until they reach an older age or their purpose in battle is over. We heal them up and send them home for adoption." Jack didn't like the way he answered that. He spoke a if the children were some form of weapons or tools or dogs that are only to be used for a moment then given away once their usefulness has disappeared. 

"However...," he continued, "there is much more potential  in you, and it can't be wasted on cheap gunpowder if you won't even eat the damn food." Where was he getting with this? Solidus was handed a syringe with liquid that shone red in the light, yet looked black  without it. Was it blood?

"That is why the doctors created a new drug suited for you that will make you way ahead of the rest. Your mind will obey every command given by only me, and you will become the ultimate soldier ." He continued with pride. He held the needle and observed it as if it was a trophy. Jack wondered if the drug he was given was really steroids. They both appeared to increase ability to the user.

"Please don't do this..." the boy pleaded. He had to many injections already, and the drug didn't look safe.

"Don't worry, Jack, the doctor said that it was harmless." He reassured  then gave a glance at the doctor, warning him that if the boy was hurt, then he would personally kill the doctor himself. He then set the syringe down and pulled out a cart with a TV on it from the back of the room. It was those box looking TVs and it was on a black cart that stood right infront of Jack's chair.

"What are doing with that? What is it?" He asked nervously. Because he was on the battlefield and spent all his life with guns and weaponry, he never saw a TV before, but he has heard of one. The only thing he knew about it was that it showed pictures on the screen, which didn't impress Jack. What was so great about a machine that shows pictures? It didn't shoot guns nor fight.

"This is the television, Jack." Solidus stated as he patted the side of the object. "The drug won't work unless it has something to focus on. Once I ten on the TV, the doctor will inject the thing inside you and then your session will be complete. Simple."

He didn't wait for an objection as he turned on the button and cranked the little nob. He put in a video tape in the vcr, and the pictures on the screen flickered. The sudden brightness  and color forced Jack to turn his head away, but the machine was producing sound... an unpleasant sound. He heard gunfire, screams, and shouting. He was afraid to look, or else he would see the same thing he saw at the enemy camp. He was afraid that the unwelcomed feeling of pleasure would come back and take over him. He just had his eyes shut tight and tried to block all of the sounds coming from the torture device.

He then felt a sharp pain on his arm and his mind slowed down. His fears worries disppeared. He felt...  _calm._ No, calm wasn't the right word. Perhaps, his mind felt a little...

"JACK! Look at the screen!" Solidus shouted. Suddenly, a strong urge to obey snapped inside of Jack's mind. It wasn't like before with the gunpowder. This time, it felt as if it was an instinct, like a matter of life or death choice. He didn't know what was happening to him, all he did was just stare at the screen hardly blinking, as if he looked away, then he feared he would be shot. The screen showed many flashing images and short clips of soldiers firing guns and planes, and people dying. His ears were being drowned by the loud noise of screamed form the TV. He hardly thought much of it, but a few times a screen would show and stay for a couple of seconds. It had a red background, and the letters were always white. They said two words per screen:  _Obey and Kill._

His mind felt numb. He wasn't exactly brain-dead, but he was so focused on the TV, suddenly growing an intense urge to pick up a gun and shoot everyone on site. He felt stronger, ready to take orders. He felt like an experienced  soldier who has fought countless battles. The drug was making  him focus on the violence of the video. There were also pictures of peaceful scenery and happy children which was later flashed by pictures of victims and ruined forests and villages. An audio was recorded over it; it was George's voice. "Don't trust the world, it's full of crap about peace when it really means war. Kill on my command only. Be a good soldier, and you will survive." The audio repeated itself a couple of times, which made Jack mumble the words slowly as if he was in a deep trance.

Solidus and the doctor smiled approvingly  in the sidelines as they watc u ed their little soldier become a killing machine. Their idea had worked quite well actually. A knock on the door came from outside, which Jack didn't hear, since he was zoned into the television. Solidus opened the door and carried a man who had a bag over his head into the room, with the help of Zuberi.

"What's happening to the boy? Why is he strapped?" The African soldier whispered to George as they set the muffled man into a chair and tied him up.

"Jack is in training. The Doc and I created a drug for him that will make his thinking  and performance improve a ton." He answered proudly, finishing up tiring the knots onto the bagged man's wrists. The hostage was crying softly, then stopped after receiving a sharp slap across the face.

Jack heard the sudden slap, which snapped him out of the trance. He  felt as if he had waken up from a nightmare. What did he just see? He then noticed the man strapped to the chair. Who was he? An enemy spy? Zuberi took the cart with the TV on it, turned it off, and rolled it back to the back of the room

 The two men carried the chair and set in in place of the TV that was infront of Jack. Once they dropped the chair, the man made a startled whine. Solidus walked towards Jack and handed him something...

A blade. It was fresh, not used from other people. It was sent from America to here. It's silvery texture glinted in the light, revealing it sharp, new edges that are waiting to cut something. It was a perfect size to use, not too big to be noticed, not too small to lose. It's black handle had an extra grip, perfect more making deep cuts. 

"Happy late brithday, Jack," he whispered, the smile that he pulled when the boy was a little kid grew on his face. He used the blade to cut the ropes of of Jack's wrists and gave him the gift. He remembered for his fifth  birthday he reviewed a small knife for his brithday. It was used and dull- nothing compared to the one he has now. 

He stared at the blade with wonder. What could he cut with this? He could feel the surge of power flow inside the knife, but the energy was different... it didn't feel like any other gun. It felt like some form of bond you make with the blade. George saw the boy's interest as he took the blade in his tiny hands.

"Ah, I see that you are interested in using your new toy?" He chuckled softly, increasing the bagged man's whining. "That's great, my boy. Cause I've got a job for you- like a first mission. This will also prove your loyalty to me, so don't mess it up. Jack realized what he was going to do immediately: He had to kill the man in the chair. It didn't bother him though. Whatever that drug did to him, he felt calmer and could follow a command without having to worry of the consquence. How bad could  it be? It wasn't like the man was a  _friend_ of his or anything.

But his lust for following the favor stopped right there...

For as soon as George pulled off the bag, the man sitting was the  _lead from the earlier mission._

How is this possible? Jack though, hesitantly stepped back. George noticed the boy's sudden change of mind and began to tell him who the man really was.

"I know, I know... this man was apart of your team as lead.  _However,_ what you didn't notice was that he was really a  _spy._ A traitor to begin with, and we don't allow those things here. He was the one who suggested where the enemy camp was, which was going to ambush us instead of us ambushing them. Thankfully, we got there super early, so they weren't prepared. How else would support arrive quickly to the enemy camp? Simple- they were already there!" He shouted the last words into the man's face, who was sniffling  and wincing at his painful words. What was going to happen to him next?

"A... traitor?" Jack repeated with disbelief, losing tone in that phrase. George  nodded. "Yes Jack, he is a traitor. And we don't accept those kind of peopld... we  _kill_ them. But not with a gun..." He paused as he pulled out his own blade, which looked as if it was given to him by war itself. The light in the room made the red colored knife appear to reflect it's surroundings, almost made it look as if another room was stored inside the weapon itself. The red was probable from the blood, or perhaps it was made to look like that. Either way, it still gave it a menacing look. It was a little bigger than Jack's blade,and it had to extra sharp features. It was just a thin, smooth blade that looked as if it can cleanly cut through anything, including water.

"You see, my boy... anyone can kill with a gun," he began picking up a gun from the table and aiming it at the man in the chair's head. "Point. Shoot. And the target is dead, a quick death. However..." He set the weapon down after pretending to fire it at the whining poor soul. He picked up his dagger and examined it thoughtfully, as if it was a new toy a child gets on his birthday. He let Jack take a closer look at it, made him see his  reflection. The boy saw his own eyes filled with... fear? No- confusion or hesitation, perhaps,   _definitely  not_ fear.

George then walked slowly towards the man, as if every step counted, as if they werected his last. He brought the knife near the man's neck. 

"But a blade..." he soothed, "it's more personal. Just pressing the cold metal on your targets throat, feeling his last moment of pulse as it beats fast, knowing exactly what will happen next. It forms a... kind of _energy  or bond_ of some sort. You can taste the fear spilling out of the man, and  the craving to make the kill out from you." He lightly caressed the blade onto the man's throat, making him sob through his muffled mouth.

Jack didn't want to see this. However, when he tried to shut his eyes and turn his head, George snapped at him.

"Jack! Don't you look away, boy!"  He held the man's head steady and paused for a moment, wanting the boy to take a glimpse of everything he was about to do. "The world holds much worse sights. You have to get used to this if you want to survive. Rembemer, it will be  _you_ who has to do this next time."

Jack nodded stiffly. He understood, but that didn't mean that he accepted it yet. He felt two hard hands hold the sides of his head, forcing him to look straight in the direction Solidus was at. It was Zuberi. He also needed Jack to focus and become stronger, which meant that he had to get used to seeing violence as worse as this. The boy was struggling against the man's grip, but his force was much stronger, so he admitted defeat and squinted his eyes, trying to block off some of what was about to take place. 

George sighed. He guessed that it was okay for him to squint as long as he was watching somewhat. The drug must have worn off. He mentally noted himself that he has to make the effect longer, and stronger. He placed the tip of the blade onto the man's beating thoat, who was pleading not to do this through his muffled mouth. He ignored the crying traitor and turned toward to boy. _  
_

"You see, Jack," he began, bending his arm, as if preparing for the first blow. "There is honor... when killing with a blade."

He finished the last part with a clean and quick slice across the man's throat. Jack whimpered. The dead man's neck was spraying the red liquid that Solidus released from its prison. It stained the concrete floor and bled all over the corpse. The image stained Jack's mind. It would leave a scar on him forever.

Zuberi chuckled softly, "He died like a traitor." He released  the boy's head and walked over to clean the bloody mess.

Solidus laughed with a hint of triumph. "Exactly. One less traitor in the battlefield. Nothing's worse than a double faced criminal."

He grabbed a towel and cleaned of his knife, which still shined despite of soaking in blood. 

"Don't be afraid, Jack. This is your future. Your knife will always be the closest friend to have in battle, not even a gun will save you as much as a blade will."

Jack grimaced. Was he going to be someone like this? Would he allow it?

"Remember, son," he said, getting close to his face.

"O, they farm lived... that's the codename for our mission."

"What does it mean?"

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough, boy. Soon enough."

 


	7. Realization

The sudden realization forced Raiden to awake from his dreamlike reality. A surge of excitement rushed throughout his body. The nightmare was strange...

Usually, his nightmares were vague and showed flashes of fighting and slurred sounds of screaming and gunshots.... but ironically, this dream was  _more_ specific. It felt as if he was living out his past again- something he feared that he would do. He felt every sensation of his hearing  down to the feeling of what he went through. What made him nervous was how he felt the familiar pleasure of killing, and the effect of the drug. But why now? Everything felt almost  _too_ real. But his mind wasn't on what he felt...

It was what he solved.

He had to tell his friends immediately  about what he figured out.  _O, they farm lived,_ the phrase had been more familiar to him than expected. Having anxiety course through him, Raiden jumped from his bed- which he frequently did considering how he grew a dislike for resting over the years- and left his given room.

As he casually walked down the halls, he noticed that there weren't many people around, only a few whom had exhausted expressions on their faces and coffee in their hands. He looked at his watch, then realized that it was six in the morning, still early enough for at least Boris or Doktor to be  awake. Courtney, however,  _loved_ her beauty sleep, so she would arrive roughly around eight or ten in the morning  _minimum._ One time, she came in a four in the afternoon considering that she stayed up late at night and went to sleep early. 

Raiden chuckled when he remembered  how Boris scolded her like a furious mother over her disobedient  child. Then, a depressing thought flashed into his mind. _Like how I was late and almost beaten to death as a kid,_ a voice mumbled solemnly. He wasn't sure if he was saying it or  _him_ that was doing the talking. It felt strange not hearing from his "alter ego"side. Ever since he had more specific nightmares, the voice has been silent this whole time. Probably not good, he thought. Usually, if the voice hasn't been popping up in a while, then he would have a severe outbreak sometime later. It had happened before, during the fight with Monsoon at World Marshal.

Sure, his cruel nature had been basically  _forced_ out of its shell  after being stabbed by cyborgs multiple times, and having his logic of his sword's purpose change. But before all of that, the Ripper had been silent for a while... come to think of it- ever since the time where he was first a cyborg! Until then, it was nothing but nightmares, but none that had caused Rose to kick him out of the room and sleep on the couch. But ever since that fight with Monsoon, the Ripper had arrived more often as if it was welcomed.

But Raiden  _did_ welcome it, multiple times. It helped him fight his opponents really well and it helped him concentrate on killing the target, not listen to some bull crap about memes and how America was rotten to the core. He already knew all of that, he had  seen what the true side of the world was, all the more reason to fight. Snake was gone- well,  _missing or gone into hiding-_ so someone has to stand up for this. It was what he was made to do, it was what his body was built for. He had the ability to speak his mind and carve his own path without worrying about being killed. He never feared death... sometimes, he even  _welcomed_ it. 

But at the moment of his demise, he would remember what he was truly fighting for: Rose, John, Sunny, and all of the victims that have the disadvantage. Just having that boost would make him cheat death every time and come back stronger. Despite all of his bad luck in life, he is lucky. He could have died as a kid. He would have never met Rose or rescued Sunny. He probably  couldn't have stopped the Patriots if he was gone. Solidus would have lived.

Solidus!

The reminder  appeared in his mind as he walked faster down the hall, meeting a door that led to the room. As he entered the office, he was greeted by Doktor, who had been tweaking one of his collected left arms that Raiden chopped off from cyborgs.  _Creepy weirdo,_ he snorted to himself. Doktor appeared to have a thing for left arms, everyone calls it the 'pettish fetish', considering  how he acts around his toys, like a protective child.

"Raiden? What are you doing up so early?" The German asked, pausing what he was doing. Normally, Raiden woke up around seven and arrived a couple minutes  after that. He was also known for being on time a lot. But his trick was that he set a reminder in his system about what time to get to work. He was surprised that no one had figured that out yet.

"I figured out the puzzle on the note!" He announced, which was hushed down by Boris, who was taking a nap in his desk, clearly hasn't properly awoken. Raiden couldn't help but reveal his discovery in an excited manor, even though he tried to act casual, his instincts told him otherwise.

Unlike Boris, Doktor jumped up and grew a smile, the same kind where it meant that he had an idea. Doktor having an idea? This was bound to be interesting, just like all of his other schemes.

"How did you figure it out?" He asked eagerly, preparing the slides.

"Um... I don't want to talk about it." The cyborg mumbled awkwardly, running a hand through his hair. He quickly added another reason as soon as he saw the German's face sink of disappointment. "Besides, I want to tell the rest of the team.  We both know that we don't like repeating stuff."

To his relief, Doktor sighed and  chuckled slightly. "Very well. But whatever you are sharing better be worth it, considering how you made me wait for this."

He gave a reassuring  nod, followed by a silent stare at the two letters from Boris's desk, which was slightly concealed through all of his paperwork and magazines of American supermodels.

Pervert.

\-----------------

 

 During the few hours, Raiden was on the computer playing Solitaire, it was the only thing that kept his mind off of current events. It was actually video games in general that kept him at peace, even if it was war games. He rembered how he was first introduced to a game consel  when he was dating Rose.

"What is  _that?"_ He stepped back from the contraption, thinking it was a bomb. At first, Rose was confused, then thought if he was joking.

"It's a Nintendo 64, what else would it be?" She dropped her amused chuckle after noticing that her boyfriend was  _not_ joking. She looked at him curiously. "What's wrong? Haven't you seen one before?"

Jack flickered his gaze around the room, searching for a lie to cover up the real reason. Wait, what was the real reason? He doesn't remember anything... so he couldn't be lying if he doesn't know whether it is true or not, right? What should he say? It was the early 21st century, so it was going to be hard to come up with an excuse about not playing a video game before.

"Um," he bit his bottom lip, pausing for a lie to form in his mind. Normally, he would be the best at lying, it had literally become a reflex. But standing infront of Rose, his love, it punched a huge hole in his chest whenever he lied to her. It felt as if he was making a speech infront of millions of people, naked. "My... uh... family was strict. I was focused on physical work instead of "Nintendo 64ing"."

Rose couldn't help but laugh at how he called the game system an activity. She understood now, she had heard of people who never grew up with video games and focused on other things. She then gave a sly look after hearing Jack say "physical work". She wrapped her slender arms around her boyfriends neck and smirked.

"Physical work, eh? Mind... showing me what you mean?" She was half teasing and half being serious. She gave a small peck on his nose, then recieved an amused chuckle from the man.

"Maybe later, honey." He smiled happily, still focused on the game system. It was a _tempting_ offer, but he had something else focused in his mind- the game. He ignored the pretend pout and sat on the couch. Rose showed him what to do and how to start the system, as if a mother was teaching her child how to play. She put in a Mario game. To Jack, it was really strange. What was the story here? Why wasn't he supposed to be inside the simulation instead of some guy in overalls? 

Since he did VR most of his life, he expected some form of transition where it would be him to jump on weird looking turtles and shoot fire,but nothing happened. What was the point of this?

"You're...  _actually_ good at this?," Rose commented in surprise. Was Jack lying? There was no way that he could master something in only a matter of a couple of dies and six minutes. But then again, he was an expert at VR... maybe this was the same thing to him.

"It's not that hard, really. You just need to follow the directive and complete the mission. All you have to do is make the right combination of jumping and shooting fire. But I don't see the point of this."

"Okay, mister Robot. Have you ever heard of a story? This game has one and you play it to finish it."

"What story?"

"The princess has been captured by this dragon-turtle thing and you are going to rescue her."

"Will I make it?"

"Depends on how good you are at beating the levels. And from what I'm seeing, you'll rescue her in no time."

"So I get to choose my own way of completing the mission... It really does matter if I fail." He murmured to himself. He was finally begining to understand. Video games were simulations of playing someone else, not you.

Over the past years of war and the Patriots and around present time, Raiden began to master playing video games. He loved the feeling of not worrying about dying and getting scolded at by his commanders. And the games where he got to chose his own story really fascinated him. He loved playing child appropriate games with his son,who was equally getting good at them. Rose, however, was terribly at them. Whenever she and the cyborg played against each other, he would always win- one time, with his eyes close!

 A hole was slowly growing inside Raiden. All of the memories of his family made him feel more depressed. But he couldn't help thinking about them, they were gone and he wanted- no-  _needed_ to find them.

 

His mid thoughts were interrupted by a gentle  hand  that was placed on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Courtney, giving a face of small worry mixed with reassurance. Raiden smiled slightly in response, showing her that he was fine.

No, he wasn't. His world was crumbling by the day.

The slight pause that filled the room was interrupted  by a half-awake Kevin, who had a mug full of the coffee that had added caffeine. "So you figured out the puzzle thingy?" He yawned the rest. His eyes were half closed. Raiden didn't think that Kevin was even realizing what he was saying. His words were a little slurred and he was lazily lounging in the chair. Boris was more awake, so was Courtney. 

"Yeah, I did in my dreams, anyway," he replied. Okay, that was a  _lie._ He never dreamed in the first place, can't even rembered when was the last time when he did. But what was he going to say? 'I had a nightmare where I was strapped to a chair and focus to see a man get his through slit'? No, that would have freaked everyone out. There's already enough tension in this room already.

Doktor, however, didn't care how he knew, he just wanted to know what the answer was. He was growing impatient. "  _Ja, ja,_ now can you at least tell us what you have discovered?" Without hearing a reply, he had already set up the slide with the sentence on it. It was now in bold letters, noting that that sentence was the priority of the mission. He beckoned Raiden over and explained to him what to do. "Should you want to edit the sentence, just click on it and type on the keyboard." 

The cyborg only smirked in response. He knows how to use a computer, so why was the German explaining it to him as if he were a young child or clueless elder?  He walked towards the monitor and waited for the lights to be turned off. Once the room was dark, with the morning sun creeping through the blinds, he began to speak.

"During the dream I had last night, the phrase, O' they farm lived', was mentioned."

"What was the dream about?" Kevin asked carelessly, now fully awake but had forgotten that Raiden didn't really like talking about his sleep. 

Ignoring the question with a small glare at his friend, he continued. "But then I realized: the phrase  didn't mean  _anything,_ really. The sentence is  _scrambled._ There is another phrase hidden in the message."

The rest of the group gave a shocked expression, Kevin almost spitting his coffee. 

"You mean, we're really that close?" He asked. "So we--"

"Do you have any idea what it translates to?" Boris interrupted.

"Yes, " Raiden swallowed. How should he mention this without saying but his past. Well, he  _did_ reveal some of it to his friends during the previous mission. So what's the harm now? Why does talking about it make him feel like he would get killed for it? Choosing not speak, he turned towards the monitor and edited the screen. He wrote a whole new sentence underneath the previous one so it would be easy to spot the difference and see the change. His metal fingers dance all over the keyboard. He typed so vigorously  as if his own life depended on it- and it probably did. As he unscrambled each word, he could hear the murmurs of reading by his team, sounding like illiterate people as they slowly read each word and tested it out for  themselves.

Once Raiden revealed what the phrase really was, the group dropped their mouths open. 

'O, they farm lived', really meant ' _army of the devil'._

The only reason why his friends were so shocked of the result was because they researched the event right after Raiden was talking about it. It said that it was lead by former president, George Sears, and it involved leading a army of children that were stripped from their freedom and forced to fight on the battlefield at a young age. They also knew that Raiden was involved in it, all the more reason to wonder what the message is trying to say.

"During my childhood, I was taught the phrase was a codename for the Army of the Devil. It was a huge project that Solidus was working on, and I was in it. Actually... I  _led it."_

He bit his lip. He waited for the looks of disgust, the shunning away because of his past, the negative remarks. He braced himself for his friends to kick him out. But the room stayed quiet instead.

"Wow, that's  _cool,_ man!" Kevin smiled in awe, clearly not seeing what his cyborg pal was implying.

"What do you mean,  _wow? I killed thousands of people!"_ he retorted, feeling offended by the weird compliment. 

"But you were a kid. That's kind of cool how you did that at such a young age."

"Maybe 'cool' isn't the right word", Courtney added, trying to fix things up before Kevin would  get punched in the gut. "I find it impressive, actually. I mean, sure, you did kill thousands, but doing that at such a young age proves that this 'army of the devil' thing must be really serious. What if the missing children are being taken for--" she stopped herself right there, hoping that she wouldn't make everyone panick, but Raiden already knew what she was about to say.

"They're... the kids... the kids are going to be apart of the new Army of the Devil." He barely whispered the last words out. His face turned pale, many thought were flooding through his mind. In the background the group was whispering something.

"Poor guy, this stuff seems to hit him hard"

"I know, especially with his family missing and all."

"Wait- you don't supposed that his family were kidnapped to be apart of-"

"Kevin! Raiden will hear you."

He did, being a cyborg and all. But he had his own thoughts to think about. What if his family was kidnapped to be apart of the army? What if John was the new lead as 'the Ripper?' Who was in charge of this? His main fear was if whether his family were connected to this. He hoped not. He hoped that it was just some lousy criminal that was easy to track and kill. But he couldn't do that to himself.

The real answer was repeating in his head. His family was connected. But why? How? Were they used to lure him to the villian? How much time did he have left? He was grabbing his hair as if he was ready to pull it out. His heart raced and his eyes flickered from left to right at the floor, as if he were reading a book that had answers.

During the silence, the phone rang on Boris's  desk, vibrating the table. The Russian walked over and picked up the phone, probably was a delivery or agent.

But it wasn't. Everyone saw t h e lack of color on Boris's  face, eyes wide. He looked like he'd seen a ghost. His body froze, arms stiff as if here were a doll. Having A blink recover his apparent shock, he quitely walking towards Raidn, who was looking at him dubiously. What was wrong with him? Boris handed him the phone with a shaking hand, almost dropping it.

"It's for you," he swallowed. He stepped back a little, which then was when Kevin and Courtney jumped up to support him. Doktor watched in the corner, furrowing his brows and studied the situation.

Raiden picked up the phone and answered gruffly. If it scared Boris, then he had to sound tough or else the caller would do the same thing.

"Hello?"

" _Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill your family."_

Suddenly, it was as if the cyborg's  pulse came to a halt. That voice. The way it curled and made a false soothing tone. It sounded gruff and yet smooth. A tight pressure wrapped around his body, squeezing all sense out of the cyborg parts. He choked, his throat ran dry. 

"It can't be..." His voice cracked with rising panic.

" _Oh, but it can. It has been, what, nine years? You never cease to amaze me, Jack."_

The way the stranger called his name left a bitter vile in Raiden's ears. Maybe the voice would change.... maybe it was a prank. It had to be. Could it be the Senator? No, Raiden knew he was dead, ripped his heart out -literally.

_"Are you ignoring me, boy?"_

Definately not Sundowner, or any of the other Winds of Destruction members. Bladewolf, it had to be him. Sunny did give him the ability to mimic voices. No, he can mimick, but not  _that_ flawless. It had to be somebody... somebody other than  _him._ But who else? He killed everyone that was a threat to him and his family. 

But then... why is the strange still--

" _Jack, I called you to talk, not to be ignored. I will hang up, leaving you to decide where-"_

 _"_ WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!" Raiden shouted, making his friends jump back in surprise. They are paced back into the corner, wanting to give the cyborg some space.

The stranger only chuckled. Raiden could feel the smirk burn through the phone. " _Now, now, Jack. That's no way to talk to your commander like that. Did the nine years make you grow spoiled and rude?"_

The way he spat the last part out as if it were poison made Raiden cringe and boil in hatred. "Solidus," he muttered out," What have you done? Why are you still alive?"

_"That's better. The solemn tone suits you, boy. Anywho, I am far too busy with plans to be talking right now. You know how I don't talk on the phone as much as in person. But to scratch your itch, I have your family. They're alive- for now. But if you come here, we can discuss more about the plan and how I survived the fight all those years ago. But be warned: If I catch another support team or any form of help with you, I will kill your wife and son. You have five hours to get here in Africa. You know pretty well where I'm holding them. If you don't make it.... then you will lose everything, just like how I did."_

And with that, the call ended. Raiden set the phone down and paused for a moment. He shut his eyes and took deep breaths. He then stood up straight and shot a look of seriousness to Boris. "I need a jet to Liberia.  _Now."_

The Russian was calm now, not including the phone call about Solidus. He shook his head. "No, I'm afraid I can't allow yourself to risk your own life for this,  _mudak."_

 "It's dangerous, Raiden." Courtney added.

A growing fire scorched thought his body. He shot a glare at his friends and snapped.

"Dangerous?! My family will  _die_ in five hours! I don't care what happens to me, I need Rose and John to be safe!"

Doktor held up both of his hands in defense. "If you're going, then you will need some back up. No one knows if this man is setting a trap."

"No, Solidus said that if I bring anyone with me, he will kill my family insantly. You don't know what's he like. He does keep his word even when at the worst moments. And he will  _not_ hesitate to dispose of people that are useless to him." Raiden spat. Time was running out. He should be on a jet right now, not arguing what's okay to do.

"But it takes 10 hours to go to Europe, Africa will only be father." Boris mentioned.

The cyborg shook his head. "Then take me a jet to Solis. It has taken me across the world in under an hour."

Kevin disagreed. "Raiden, just stop. We're not even sure if your family is there. We can't take the risk."

"Plus, it will cost a lot of money." Doktor added.

Raiden made a face of disgust. He snarled. "So you are all going to let my family die in order to protect you precious funds and lives?   _You_ aren't the nest taking the risk here, I am! It is my decision where to go!"

"Enough Raiden! There is nothing we can do! We will come up with something. For now, just... go take a walk to calm down or something." Boris demanded,pointing at the door.

A sudden chill froze over Raiden. He narrowed his eyes and shot a piercing cold glare at everyone. "Of course, because you don't know what it's like to have something to care about taken from you and forcing you to do whatever you can to save them." He said biterly. He opened the door and looked at them is anger. "Fuck you, guys. I'm going to save my family without you. And if I see anyone crossing my path, you will  _deeply_ regret it." He slammed the door on his way out. 

He walked briskly down the halls and contacted Sunny. "Sunny, I need a flight to Africa immediatly." 

The girl responded in a  surprised tone. "What? Raiden,what are you doing here? Make a schedule? But it's busy!"

Raiden forced himself to keep his anger low. "Sunny... my family are hostages there."

There was a few moments of silence and quite  murmurs in the background, then Sunny came back on.

"Alright, I scheduled a flight. The carrier will pick you up as soon as it tracks you down."

"Thanks, Sunny."

"And Raiden? Make sure you and your family return safe."

"I'll try."

He hung up the codec and exited the facility.

"I'm comming, Rose." He murmured to himself.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Please note that english is not my first language, so sentences, grammer, and spelling may not run as smoothly as all of tue other good authors and there could also by simple mistakes. (Cause I type this on my tablet)
> 
> Thanks for reading and please (if you like) give this story some Kudos and leave a comment! :)


End file.
